Saturday, November 2, 2024

We arrived in New York City last night, in time to raise a toast to Lady Liberty before dinner, and docked alongside the Intrepid Museum

We have been to NYC a few times, and we’ve already seen many of the main attractions: Ellis Island, Empire State Building, Times Square, Broadway, Lincoln Center, Central Park, the 911 Memorial. So, this time, we were looking for something different. The Intrepid Museum is just next door, so we were able to walk there. We decided to go early, since we will be leaving harbor later this afternoon.

Located in the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood, this museum was established in 1982 after the US Navy transferred the USS Intrepid to the Intrepid Museum Foundation in 1981. The ship underwent significant renovations, at a cost of $22 million, and the museum was named the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1986. The name was shortened to Intrepid Museum in 2024.

The USS Intrepid was an Essex-class aircraft carrier, launched in 1943. She served in World War II, as well as the in Korean and Vietnam Wars. She was also used for space mission recovery efforts. The Intrepid was decommissioned in the late 1970s, and was due to be scrapped until being tapped for the museum in New York.

The USS Growler, a Grayback-class nuclear submarine, was added in late 1988. The Growler was intended to deliver Regulus I cruise missiles, but there were problems with this class of sub, and only two Graybacks were ever built. This sub was launched in 1958 and decommissioned in 1964. The Growler is the only nuclear missile submarine open to the public in the United States.

About 100 sailors and officers spent extended periods of time on board this sub. Quarters are tight, built to the peak of efficiency, and packed into a total space of 300 feet in length x 27 feet in width. Do not apply to be a submariner if you are claustrophobic.

A British Concorde supersonic aircraft was added in 2003. This particular airplane set a world speed record for passenger airlines in 1996, flying between London and New York in just under three hours. There are only two museums in the US with Concordes, the other is the Museum of Flight at Boeing Field in Seattle, Washington. We toured that one on a visit to Seattle in 2018, so we skipped this one.

When the museum acquired the Space Shuttle Enterprise in 2012, a new Space Shuttle Pavilion was developed. Built in 1976, the Enterprise was the first orbiter of the Space Shuttle system. The shuttle was originally to be named Constitution, but a letter-writing campaign by Trekkies convinced the White House to tell NASA to change the name to Enterprise.

Since it was constructed without engines or a functional heat shield, it was not capable of spaceflight. Its fifth and final fight occurred in October, 1977. For a few years, NASA used it to conduct tests to prepare other ships for space flight in Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. It was on display at the Smithsonian from 2003 – 2012 before being transferred to the Intrepid Museum.

We are particularly interested in the Space Shuttle, as our neighbor city, St. Cloud, Minnesota, is now home to Inspiration, a full-sized replica of a space shuttle. Felicity-John Pederson acquired the mockup in 2015, and raised funds to transport it cross-country from Florida to St. Cloud, Minnesota. My husband’s brother was part of the effort to bring it here, so they drove to the southern boarder of Minnesota on June 23 this year to greet it as it crossed border, then accompanied it to its temporary home in south St. Cloud.

Next efforts will be devoted to finding a permanent home, and building a museum to house the Inspiration.

This afternoon, I took a walk to Bryant Park, home of a Winter Village with its own ice skating rink. I didn’t expect it to open already, but plenty of people were here enjoying the sunny day on the rink. The Winter Village opened just last week, on October 25, and will remain open until March 2, 2025. Beginning in 2002, a Holiday Market, modeled after a traditional German Christkindlmarket, surrounds the rink.

Not far from Times Square, I came across the Midtown West Spring Fair, with food, crafts and live music. Here, too, many people were out enjoying this lovely day in New York City.

We left New York City at around 3pm today, heading to Norfolk, Virginia.